This invention relates to rotary screening and dewatering apparatus, and has to do more particularly with apparatus adapted to classify or separate, or to concentrate or thicken materials, such as the liquid slurries used in various pulp and paper making processes.
While numerous devices have hitherto been proposed for dewatering solids and fiber reclamation purposes, including the use of rotatable cylindrical screens provided with diverse arrangements for agitating and washing the materials being treated, such devices have suffered from a lack of efficiency having a relatively low rate of throughput as well as requiring excessive down-time for cleaning purposes. Efforts to increase throughput have generally been directed toward the provision of larger units which, while increasing capacity, also materially increase the cost of the units as well as the amount of space they occupy, which is often at a premium in the mill.
In contrast to the direction taken by the prior art, the present invention relates to the provision of a screen separator which is extremely compact and yet highly efficient, the unit being effectively self-cleaning and capable of operating for long periods of time without being shut down for maintenance purposes.